what is your experience with I-pilot staying on brush piles

[chambone9]

Does it work well or is it not so great. Only at staying on brush I know there are other posts on I-pilot but does it stay on brush well. Also when it gets blown off the spot does it try to get back all
out or does it just go gradually. And does it go back to the middle (the spot you marked) or just to within five feet of the spot. Just want to make sure this is what I want or not. Thanks guys.

[Ferdi]

chambone9, your best bet would be to ask on your state board if someone locally has on that could give you a quick show if they have one. I like mine relly well, sure beats a hand operated or foot controlled one for me. I have a bum leg so the foot operated is out. I do use the foot pad for the iPilot but I have it on my lap or cooler right next to me if I screw up the remote and have to use the foot control. You can goof up the remote by getting it out of sinc until you re-program it back to the motor. I like to drop a bouy away from the brush pile and then stay close to the anchor point and cast or fish towards the bouy. The iPilot will take you back gently usually unless you are in bad wind then it will move you a little quicker sometimes but it is usually gentle.
Just my opinion. Ferdi aka Fred

[BAMA S]

AS mentioned above it would be best to test drive one. Mine works great for me, it keeps me in a area to be able to fish hands free. If the wind is gusting in different directions the rear of the boat has a tendacy to drift around some. I would buy again ....

[jeepguyjames]

If your buying it for the spot lock feature alone, reconsider.......its not all its cracked up to be.....the rest of the functions are amazing......but mine wont hold me on a brush pile well enough in any kind of wind....... 70lb thrust, 60in shaft on a 16ft deep v tin boat

[Mumpy]

I agree with James, I have found that more times than not it puts me off my original spot over a period of a few minutes and sometimes the motor will wind itself up in its cords to a point where you think you're going to snap em and it will then shut itself off and while you are unwinding it and starting it again you've drifted off your spot.

Then somedays it works flawlessly and whomever I have fishing with me swears they must have one.

I've also heard that the Terrova doesn't have the Cord Problem I mentioned, not sure though, just what I heard.

[Shellback]

If your buying it for the spot lock feature alone, reconsider.......its not all its cracked up to be.....the rest of the functions are amazing......but mine wont hold me on a brush pile well enough in any kind of wind....... 70lb thrust, 60in shaft on a 16ft deep v tin boat

That has been my experience also. If you only fish vertical on brush piles, you are better off with a cable control. But the other features of the I-Pilot far out weigh the drifting off brush piles. Keep in mind with a Terrova you get the foot pedal and can use it in conjunction with the I-Pilot to stay spot on. Say you just fish vertical with a cable steer motor, and on a windy day you break a jig off. 9 times out of 10 with a cable steer, you are going to be blown way off the pile, or have to be fiddling steering and tying on at the same time. With spot lock you should never be much more than 20 feet or so off your mark. Will spot lock keep you within 5 feet, no way. Will it keep you within 20 feet or so on a windy day, most likely.

[Don G]

That has been my experience also. If you only fish vertical on brush piles, you are better off with a cable control. But the other features of the I-Pilot far out weigh the drifting off brush piles. Keep in mind with a Terrova you get the foot pedal and can use it in conjunction with the I-Pilot to stay spot on. Say you just fish vertical with a cable steer motor, and on a windy day you break a jig off. 9 times out of 10 with a cable steer, you are going to be blown way off the pile, or have to be fiddling steering and tying on at the same time. With spot lock you should never be much more than 20 feet or so off your mark. Will spot lock keep you within 5 feet, no way. Will it keep you within 20 feet or so on a windy day, most likely.

If your buying it for the spot lock feature alone, reconsider.......its not all its cracked up to be.....the rest of the functions are amazing......but mine wont hold me on a brush pile well enough in any kind of wind....... 70lb thrust, 60in shaft on a 16ft deep v tin boat

I totally agree with both posts. Spot lock is for tying on jigs and peeing.

[Rees Guide]

Mine adjusts pretty good but its not perfect. If you troll its the cat's meow and if my Terrova quit today I would have another tomorrow, the first response was the best response in this thread. Crawl in the boat with someone and check it out.

[MeanV2]

I have the Terrova with foot control also, but the I pilot feature and spot lock has worked great for me. Fought 25 mph winds Tuesday and it kept me where I wanted to be. I have never had a problem with cord getting wound up. It senses a wrap and will unwrap and go back to doin it's thing

Dan

[Redge]

Rees has given some good advice, which I agree with completely.
"Mine adjusts pretty good but its not perfect. If you troll its the cat's meow and if my Terrova quit today I would have another tomorrow, the first response was the best response in this thread. Crawl in the boat with someone and check it out."

If mine were to disappear off my boat tomorrow I would go buy a new one!

Mumpy when the ipilot quits on you, (cord wound to tight) if you hit the bottom right button, the arrow, it takes you back the last spot lock point!